Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has been called by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) to a meeting to discuss the central bank’s timeframe for retiring the old N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes.
The new redesign of the N200, N500, and N1,000 notes as well as the CBN’s withdrawal policy were both mentioned in the invitation sent out by the Director-General of the Forum, Asishana Okauru.
The meeting’s agenda, which is anticipated to take place virtually, was headlined “The Economic and Security Implications of Naira redesign and withdrawal strategy,” he claimed.
According to a statement by Abdulrazaque Bello-Barkindo, the NGF’s Head of Media and Public Affairs, the meetings “offer to stimulate involvement and communication amongst various stakeholders, including governments and civil society organizations, to come up with a solution to the persisting issue.”
President Muhammadu Buhari introduced the revised N200, N500, and N1,000 notes on November 23, 2022.
The old banknotes must be retired by January 31, 2023, which has been set as the deadline.
The CBN had previously announced an upward review of its cash withdrawal policy across all payment channels by both individuals and business organizations in the wake of its currency reform initiative.
Individuals and corporate organizations can withdraw a maximum of N500,000 and N5 million, respectively, under the amended regime, according to the bank, which will take effect on January 9, 2023. This is an increase from the N100,000 and N500,000 that were earlier announced on December 6, 2022.
The central bank noted that the upward review was a consequence of comments it received from stakeholders in an amended circular dated December 21, 2022 and sent to all Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and Other Financial Institutions, Microfinance Banks, Mobile Money Operators, and Agents.
Mr. Haruna Mustafa, Director of the CBN’s Banking Supervision Department, signed the letter.
The CBN stated that in compelling circumstances where cash withdrawal above the limit is required for legitimate purposes, such request shall be subject to a processing fee of three per cent and five per cent for individuals and corporate organisations respectively.
